Our commitments

CLIMATE, WATER, BIODIVERSITY

Earth’s balance relies on vital interactions between water, climate, and biodiversity. Each depends on the others to maintain the planet’s health—a systemic approach that inspires Bel’s environmental policy.
Our goal is to preserve the planet, ensure sustainable management of natural resources, and reduce our impacts across the entire value chain—promoting more sustainable production of our products from farm to fork.
-25%

GHG emissions across the Group’s entire value chain, in absolute terms, between 2017 and 2035.

-45%

Water withdrawals. A reduction across all our factories between 2017 and 2035.

0

deforestation by 2025. The Group is committed to eliminating risks of contributing to deforestation and ecosystem conversion linked to three key raw materials: soy and palm kernel meal, palm oil, and paper and cardboard.

THE GREAT CHALLENGE OF CLIMATE CHANGE

By committing to reduce our net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 25% across our entire value chain between 2017 and 2035 (a target validated by the Science-Based Targets initiative, we aim to contribute at our scale to limiting global warming to below +1.5°C and support the goals of the Paris Agreement.

As a member of the Race To Zero initiative, Bel is targeting carbon neutrality for our plants by 2025 and across our entire value chain by 2050. To get there, we've launched an ambitious action plan: measuring and driving our carbon performance; avoiding, reducing, and sequestering emissions; and acting on our sites and with our partners, all along the product lifecycle.

Discover our bold carbon capture ambition

OUR PATH TO FIGHTING CLIMATE CHANGE

Committed to a profitable and responsible business model, carbon reduction drives both our financial and extra-financial performance.
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TAKING ACTION WITH OUR PARTNER FARMERS

We work hand-in-hand with our dairy farmers to pioneer more sustainable agriculture, guided by our Upstream Dairy Charter, co-created with WWF France. This charter is built on three pillars: our partner producers, animal welfare, and regenerative agriculture.

Each implemented action helps advance our dairy supply chain decarbonization pathway, aiming to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2035 compared to 2017 (measured in kg CO2 eq per kg of standardized milk). This translates into specific commitments and initiatives, including:

  • 100% of milk and apples from farms transitioning to regenerative agriculture by 2030.
  • Voluntary rollout of Bovaer® feed supplement in Slovakia and France to reduce enteric methane emissions from cows.

Expanding our Plant-Based Portfolio

By 2050, 10 billion people will need to be fed. This creates a clear necessity: diversify and balance animal and plant-based food sources while preserving our planet’s resources, as recommended by the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change).
Since 2016, we’ve gone beyond our traditional cheese territory by acquiring MOM, a fruit compote specialist, and launching plant-based alternatives for our core brands: Boursin®, The Laughing Cow®, and Babybel®. Today, the Group operates across three complementary areas: dairy, fruit, and plant-based products.
Discover our plant-based innovations

ACTIONS AT OUR PRODUCTION SITES

We have committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions from our sites by 75.6% in absolute terms between 2017 and 2035 (target validated by the SBTi). To achieve this, we have implemented actions to improve energy efficiency and transition to renewable energy sources (biomass, solar panels, etc.).
For over 10 years, the Group has been rolling out the ESABEL program (Energy Saving At Bel), which enables each site to access best practices, monitor consumption, and set action plans to reduce it.
By 2024, we have already cut our GHG emissions by 42% compared to 2017, and 97% of the electricity used on our sites comes from renewable sources.

Driving change in transportation

Since 2020, STEF, our number one partner in Europe, has supported us within the FRET 21 program in France—a multi-stakeholder initiative that drives the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from downstream transportation.
Various levers are used, especially multimodal transport, load optimization, and alternative fuels to fossil energy. Together, we have developed action plans to reduce our impact and identified numerous areas for improvement, from pallet optimization to truck driving techniques. This partnership was formalized through our joint commitment to the Lean&Green program, achieving CO2 emission reductions in 2023 (vs. 2020) of 30% in Portugal and 20% in Spain. Between 2017 and 2023, the deployed action plans helped reduce Bel’s downstream transport carbon intensity by 3%.

MINIMIZING THE IMPACT OF OUR PACKAGING

We work to reduce the environmental impact of our packaging through an eco-design approach throughout the product lifecycle, while also eliminating unnecessary packaging that does not contribute to product preservation.

Our sustainable portion policy is based on the 5Rs:
  • Refuse unnecessary elements and waste;
  • Reduce material use and food loss;
  • Reuse as much as possible and redirect losses to people or animals;
  • Restore resources by using recycled or renewable materials;
  • Recycle packaging.

PRESERVING AND REGENERATING WATER RESOURCES FROM FARM TO TABLE

Bel is committed to preserving and regenerating water at every stage of its value chain and implements concrete actions across four main areas:

  • Measuring and managing water footprint at the Group level, by product, brand, or country. In 2023, Bel carried out its first comprehensive water footprint assessment across its entire value chain.
  • Reducing water withdrawals by optimizing water management in our factories (target: -45% between 2017 and 2035), promoting regenerative agricultural practices that aim to restore soils and optimize the water cycle (such as cover crops and pilot projects), and drastically reducing the use of aluminum and plastic materials in our packaging.
  • Protecting and regenerating resources by improving wastewater treatment at our sites, ensuring regenerative farming practices to slow down the water cycle and reduce water pollution, and rehabilitating wetlands such as peatlands, which act as natural sponges to retain and filter water.
  • Strengthening the resilience of the Group and its ecosystem by guaranteeing water access for employees and adapting our sourcing strategy to water-related risks.
Discover our commitment to sustainable portions

GROUP BIODIVERSITY POLICY

PRESERVING BIODIVERSITY AND NATURAL ECOSYSTEMS

We recognize that each of our activities impacts biodiversity—and that we are deeply dependent on it. Our Group’s products are diverse (based on milk, fruits, and other plant-based ingredients), and our operations span a wide range of regions where protecting natural wealth is essential.

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